Buying and razing a home in Pimmit Hills

[Anonymous]

Reserve Poster - thanks for posting, seriously!

I know a lot of women who think that the Reserve is a status symbol. I'm no marriage counselor, but I don't find that quality so attractive. But I definitely appreciate your input as someone who has seen the area take shape.

My friends bought in McLean near the library, and their neighborhood has turned to about 80% new from just 20% 5 years ago. So, change is inevitable.

There is a huge issue with the old homeowners who hate the change, however. You can't please everyone. I think they would be better off cashing in and calling it a day. But then, what would they complain about?!

In the Reserve, you don't have the same anger and animosity, and don't have to deal with the lower brackets; the starting price is higher, for one. I tend to think that those people would be too busy to look for trouble.

I certainly don't understand being so obvious as to try to rip a place apart if you can't even afford it to begin with. "Oh no, my money is in a mattress......" Yeah, right

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Reserve Poster - thanks for posting, seriously!

I know a lot of women who think that the Reserve is a status symbol. I'm no marriage counselor, but I don't find that quality so attractive. But I definitely appreciate your input as someone who has seen the area take shape.

My friends bought in McLean near the library, and their neighborhood has turned to about 80% new from just 20% 5 years ago. So, change is inevitable.

There is a huge issue with the old homeowners who hate the change, however. You can't please everyone. I think they would be better off cashing in and calling it a day. But then, what would they complain about?!

In the Reserve, you don't have the same anger and animosity, and don't have to deal with the lower brackets; the starting price is higher, for one. I tend to think that those people would be too busy to look for trouble.

I certainly don't understand being so obvious as to try to rip a place apart if you can't even afford it to begin with. "Oh no, my money is in a mattress......" Yeah, right

You again? Your posts are so recognizable you might as well just make a username already.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
You don't live there - what do you know about what vast majority in PH looks like? If you do, and hate it as much as you do, there's drugs for that.

Older homes are (still) a (shrinking) majority, but hardly a vast one, as one teardown follows another.

I've driven around the area plenty of times. The vast majority of PH consists of tired old houses and poorly kept yards, with random McMansions here and there. No one should buy into the fantasy that it's going to be the next North Arlington or that all the old houses will have been torn down five years from now.

Sorry if it bothers you when the truth is pointed out.

Maybe you should drive around there again, although I do wonder what keeps you coming down not just once but plenty of times - appetite for ugly? Majority of PH is still old homes, but not a vast one; in two years I've been here I can count dozens of new construction sites. Slowly, their numbers are growing. How long it will take, no one can say.

And let's just point out one thing again: North Arlington isn't popular on account of its looks. It's a great area, but that thing called beauty ranks very, very low on the list of its advantages.

It is popular on acount of its looks. Have you been to Country Club Hills, Chain Bridge Forest, Lyon Village or Cherrydale, just to pick a few places? They are full of beautiful homes. Pimmit Hills, on the other hand, is only "popular" because housing is in short supply right now, and the only transition there has been from a run-down dump to a run-down dump mixed with some of the region's tackiest McMansions. There are virtually no distinctive or eye-pleasing houses there. So calling it the next North Arlington is a very big stretch.

Pimmit hills is only popular now? Bull shit, homes have been going under contract very quickly for the last 3-5 years. People want the McLean /West Falls Church location but don't have or want to pay McLean prices.

Take a stroll down memory lane of what n Arlington used to look like before the metro.

One could argue that N Arlington have even more ridiculous new homes because lots are almost sometimes half the size and width of the Pimmit Hills lots. Notice how a lot of the homes have the most ridiculous 2 story stairs with garage in the basement?

As I browse these Arlington homes what is interesting is there is SOOO much inventory. In pimmit hills a new home comes about every few months and goes under contract pretty quickly.

Could there be an over supply of new very expensive Unaffordable homes in north Arlington? The answer is YES.

Oh look an Arlington NDI twin of PH
http://www.redfin.com/VA/Arlington/5870-1st-St-N-22203/home/11241234

BEGIN THE N ARLINGTON NEW CONSTRUCTION SHOW CASE

[Anonymous]

uh oh a generic N Arlington "McMansion" where is the outrage?

http://www.trulia.com/property/3107025346-6201-36th-St-N-Arlington-VA-22213#photo-1

[Anonymous]

What's bad in Arlington is the exception there but the norm in Pimmit Hills. You seem to have missed that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What's bad in Arlington is the exception there but the norm in Pimmit Hills. You seem to have missed that.

How come the exception is more than half? An exception should be less than 3-5%? You know why? Because the lots are smaller in N Arlington which makes a 3-5000 SQRFT house's proportions all out of wack to fit in the tiny space.

Use logic! I am not talking about mclean or great falls or Potomac because there are larger lots.

[Anonymous]

Every house on this page is fug

[Anonymous]

Who is the stalker who claims posters are recognizable? They are creepy, inaccurate and need a life! There are plenty of people that are good with money, and don't claim to be something they are not. Get over yourself. You are doing it ALL wrong. Of course, if you weren't, you wouldn't be so upset with your own life.

[Anonymous]

nice try, psycho

[Anonymous]

Enjoy your new house in PH in good health OP!

[Anonymous]

PP here. Doesn't 9:22 sound not psycho? Snicker.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
It is popular on acount of its looks. Have you been to Country Club Hills, Chain Bridge Forest, Lyon Village or Cherrydale, just to pick a few places? They are full of beautiful homes. Pimmit Hills, on the other hand, is only "popular" because housing is in short supply right now, and the only transition there has been from a run-down dump to a run-down dump mixed with some of the region's tackiest McMansions. There are virtually no distinctive or eye-pleasing houses there. So calling it the next North Arlington is a very big stretch.

Nope, it isn't. If North Arlington was in PG County (horrid schools), no one would pay these prices. If North Arlington was in Ashburn (far away), no one would pay these prices. Yes, North Arlington has many, many beautiful properties but people don't pay the Arlington premium for the beauty. They pay it for the location, location, location, then school and services. Otherwise, any beautiful house in North Arlington can be found elsewhere at less.

Next, comparing PH to North Arlington is just silly (and it wasn't me who did it), for a host of reasons, including the most obvious one: North Arlington is about a thousand times larger. A proper comparison would be Cherrydale to PH (quality-wise, it's still ridiculous), but at least you are comparing neighborhood vs. neighborhood.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
North Arlington is full of charming neighborhoods and homes. Pimmit Hills was, is, and will long remain an eyesore that should have been torn down decades ago.

It's also full of nondescript brick boxes. People don't seek out North Arlington for the looks. It's a great area but it's not the beauty that makes people pay $600K for a tiny box on a main road.

I can't quite get why PH's popularity appears to bother you as much as it does.

The reason Arlington is expensive is due to the location near DC and the metro. I see parallels to the Tysons redevelopment and metro.

Arlington is not particularly far from Tysons, I don't see it being overshadowed by the likes of the PH, because it will also benefit from Tysons redevelopment. Places like N.arlington and Mclean have benefited long time ago from being in the middle between the jobs in DC area and in VA suburbs and will continue to do so. Any place within 10 min drive from Tysons pretty much will benefit from this, PH is not some holy ground for some exclusive access to what is primarily a driver-friendly office park/mall with tons of parking lots. Plus, there are areas that are closer to Tysons than most of PH.

[Anonymous]

Funny, everyone wants to be some sort of cheerleader for the place they like and can afford.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What's bad in Arlington is the exception there but the norm in Pimmit Hills. You seem to have missed that.

Oh please, "exception." Run a search in North Arlington capped at $550K and see what comes out. Life doesn't disappear beneath your income bracket, you know.